allred



Dec. 1, 1959 s. A. ALLRED 2,915,050

INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE Filed May 15, 1957 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 SAMUEL A. ALLRED INVENTOR.

/Am/M A T TORNE Y Dec. 1, 1959 s. A. ALLRED INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed May 13, 1957 SAMUEL A. ALLRED wi /L;

ATTORNEY United States Patent 7 INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE Samuel A. Allred, Grand Prairie, Tex.

Application May 13, 1957, Serial No. 658,584

1 Claim. (Cl. 123-55) This invention relates to internal combustion engines and has for its primary object the provision of an additional bank of cylinders in a V-type engine for increased power without materially adding to the vertical dimensions or weight thereof.

Particularly, the invention is adaptable for use in race cars and aircraft where cowls are designed to reduce air resistance; however, the invention is adaptable to other uses where space occupied by an engine is a problem. While the illustrated form of the invention shows and describes a four cycle engine, it is to be understood that the invention may be readily adapted to two cycle engines by those versed in the art.

Additional objects will become apparent from the following description and the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 is a transverse sectional view of a V-type engine embodying the features of the present invention, and

Figure 2 is an enlarged vertical sectional view taken approximately on line 2--2 of Figure 1.

Since V-type engines are well known to the art, the component parts thereof will not herein be described in detail, be it sufficient to say that the illustrated V-type engine includes the usual cylinder block 10, cylinder heads 11, oil pan 12, rocker arms 13, rocker arm covers 14, pistons 15, crankshaft 16, counterweight 17, oil pump 18, oil line 19, oil pump strainer 20 and other conventional component parts.

The invention is directed to an additional bank of cylinders 21, the number of which cylinders correspond with the number of cylinders in each bank of the above referred to typical V-type engine. The cylinders 22 are arranged in line in a cylinder block 23 and has a water jacket 24. The cylinder block 23 is mounted on an inverted cylinder head 25 which, in turn, is mounted on the first described engine block 10. The piston 26 in each cylinder 22 is secured to the upper end of a piston rod 27 which slidably extends downwardly through the cylinder head 25 where the lower end thereof is connected with a crank arm 28 by means of a wrist pin 30. Preferably, the piston rod 27 is hollow throughout its length and is cut away, as at 32, to provide communication between the crank case and the cover 33 on the upper end 0t each cylinder 22 to provide pressure relief in the latter. A breather cap 34 is provided in each cylinder 2,915,050 Patented Dec. 1,, 1959 ice corresponding intake and exhaust valve assemblies 41 and 42. Also shown in Figure 2 is a preferred connecting rod bearing 43 of ball bearings for connecting the connecting rod 28 with the crankshaft 16.

In operation, the described engine operates in the usual manner except the additional cylinders 22 are fired beneath their pistons 26; thus, the timing thereof is opposite to that of firing above the outer surfaces of the pistons. By reason of the location of the spark plugs 35 beneath the additional cylinders 22 and by reason of the location of the valveassemblies 41 and 42 also beneath the cylinders, the relative height of the engine as a whole is reduced as compared to firing in the top of the cylinders. This construction and arrangement makes possible streamlining and reduced cross sectional dimensions referred to in the foregoing.

The invention is not limited to the construction herein shown and described, but may be made in various ways within the scope of the appended claim.

What is claimed is:

An internal combustion engine including a crankshaft within a crankcase, a cylinder and piston perpendicular with the axis of said crankshaft, a cylinder head on said cylinder at the end thereof adjacent said crankshaft, a cover on the upper end of said cylinder, a piston rod connected with said piston and slidably extending through said cylinder head, said piston rod being hollow throughout its length and through said piston providing communication between the crankcase of the engine and the outer end of said piston, a connecting rod pivotally connected at one end with the inner extending end of said piston rod and rotatably connected at its other end with said crankshaft, ignition means within said cylinder head communicating with said cylinder, valve means in said cylinder head, and fuel intake and exhaust means communicating with the end of said cylinderincluding said cylinder head.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

